Tim Sweeney: Graphics Will Be Indistinguishable From Reality In 10 Years

Epic's founder, Tim Sweeney, believes that we’ll achieve "an indistinguishable from reality level of graphics" within the next 10 years.

Speaking at the Develop conference, Sweeney, noted that computing power available for graphics has increased a million times since he first started programming.

But that doesn’t mean that games will be indistinguishable from reality. "That just moves the challenge of graphics to the problems we don't know how to solve," explained Sweeney. “Like simulating human intelligence, animation, speech, lip-syncing. There are still a lot areas that will require ongoing research for probably the rest of our lives before we come close to approaching reality.”

This seems like a total guess by just some guy really, there have many predictions about many things 10 years ago. Either way, regarding gaming, graphics are decent enough now, and what really needs to change is the quality of the AI in games, I rarely see a game with a good AI, usually its just a script or a path they follow. But actually making decisions while playing the game and it works is rare. I love online games, but I would love to see AI (bots) that are more then just cannon fodder or extreme aimbot survival practice

I'm doubtful, as consoles have been doing a stellar job of holding technological advancements back, to clarify, it took the Xbox 360 to make multi-core rendering/processing viable in games...sigh -_-
It'll probably be 20 years thanks to consoles, unless the next generation really turns things up, as this gen is only marginally better than the previous generation.

If the consoles just ******* die already. I've never seen something that has been so deserving of death be this hard to kill. Some game devs already pretty much have the animations figured out. Crysis does it pretty well. No One Lives Forever 2 handled better than most games do nowadays. AI seems to be the biggest challenge. It always sucks. Good luck on that.

Quite right, and with the debacle that this latest gen of consoles has been thus far, we may well see things change massively in the gaming industry. One thing that is all but a certainty is that the PC industry will see a massive revival.

What I said goes to church. Kneel. Or else. Else being a crusade, totally medieval. My spouce just finished my last bottle of beso. Without me, Im will pay it with you if I need. Its better than fighting a few national guards. ****, this burns and Im not talkin about words but cigar burns. Kneel! Guy Fawkes did so. You wouldnt be the first or the last. You respond to me and only me. I can take you and three of your brothers and sisters. To make it less and impair. Kneel. Serious, I will fry your visa and **** you blind. Captcha, good luck. Hell yeah, Crom, go to hell. I said so, this message is under subterfuge from international source's, still. Long live Mega Games and I. Let me sign the paper. It is a question of destiny. You must obey or else.

It will never ever look like real life until people embrace a stereoscopic 3d device of some kind. No matter how good the graphics will look, the brain knows it's looking at a flat surface. I've been playing stereo 3d games for quite a few years now on pc and can't go back. even bad graphics can become real-ish in stereo. But since rendering in stereo takes double the power, it's going to take more than 10 years to do this.

He is full of it. Problem solving doesnt depend on game studios most of the time, it depends on pro mathematicians working in companies, universities or alone at home. They are the guys and gals that keep the graphic industry working and guess what, they dont fall into tables even if they work with tables. Its just a stupid comment for whatever interview or post. If you think 3d engine programmers are solving problems and making use of creativity on the fly, you are bat **** crazy and know nothing of economics/logistics and math for that matter. Most of the time, they just apply what the real deal is working with or worked out and have good culture in terms of these equations and the people that found them. Yes, I said found. Creation is for gods, not for you or me. Equally, thats like an economist saying that a national crysis is going to end in a certain period of time. I would be happy if war came around with his lunatic logic as to defy this statement. I might be drunk, which I am; however, aaa... Im going to run with bulls and have more absenta, not before making love and marking a goal if possible to follow with a night of fire. Megagames, contract me. I will social engineer may way into the world and send you rocket high, without absenta. Promise.

Stop talking ******* *****! if enough pc's had top hardware then the software developers might actually develop solely for the pc. instead most of you pirate and the rest stick with ageing mediocre graphics so no wonder its ports all the way.

Hopefully I gess, we will see the most marvelous graphics that will exist, like Tim Sweeney said (10 years). This remembers me of Gamer (the movie), want better graphics than that xD?
btw I'm gameplay lover so I do like to spend some hours on 2D amazing games but also love to immerse my a$$ on my ultra modded Skyrim or Morrowind :D

What im saying is that im a fan of peculiar graphic styles, like cell shading and 2d cartoonish stuff (thinking of monkey island 3 or other adventure games). Im not always running to buy the newest graphic card for playing fps with huge hardware requirements. :) I hope this clarifies my idea